Gwen the Beauty and the Beast Fairy

by Daisy Meadows

  “Those kids in the animal costumes are too mean!” one boy said.

  Jack Frost didn’t seem to care. He was busy cutting into some blue fabric with a pair of scissors.

  “Ribbons, come to me!” he yelled to his goblins.

  “He seems to be very interested in making that princess dress,” said Gwen.

  “Maybe he’s concentrating so hard, he won’t notice if we fly over and unhook the pin?” Kirsty asked.

  “I’m not sure,” Rachel said. “We’d be right underneath his pointy nose!”

  “I’ll distract him,” Gwen said. “It won’t be easy to unhook the pin. But your tiny fairy hands should do the trick.”

  “We’ll do our best,” Rachel promised.

  “I’ll fly in front of him first,” said Gwen. “Then you two go for the pin.”

  Rachel and Kirsty nodded. The plan was in place!

  Jack Frost was happily humming to himself as Gwen flew right in front of him.

  “I am Beauty, yes that’s me!” he sang.

  “I know Beauty, and you are not her!” Gwen said.

  Jack Frost looked up and scowled.

  “You! Get away from here. You’re ruining my fairy tale!” he yelled.

  Kirsty and Rachel started to flutter silently toward Jack Frost.

  “This fairy tale doesn’t belong to you. It belongs to everyone!” Gwen told him.

  The girls hovered near Jack Frost’s shoulder, just above the pin. So far, he was too busy arguing with Gwen to notice them.

  Kirsty and Rachel each took a side of the magic rose pin.

  “I see the clasp!” Rachel whispered.

  “Gwen was right. Our fairy hands are just the size to open it,” Kirsty said, and she reached for the clasp.

  As she did, her wings fluttered against Jack Frost’s shirt. He looked down.

  “Hey!” he cried. “Shoo! Get away!”

  He swiped at them and the girls had to quickly fly out of the way to avoid being hit.

  “Goblins!” he yelled.

  The troop of goblins hurried toward him.

  “Oh, no you don’t!” Gwen said firmly. She pointed her magic wand at a container of paint. The paint covered the floor like an oil slick in front of the goblins.

  Whomp! Whomp! Whomp! Whomp! The four goblins slipped and fell.

  “No fair!” Jack Frost cried. Then he picked up a jar of glitter and poured it into his hand. He took a deep breath, and then he blew.

  Whoosh! The glitter rained down on Kirsty and Rachel as they tried to fly away.

  “Oh no!” Kirsty yelled. “It’s making my wings heavy!”

  “We’re falling!” Rachel cried.

  “Hang on, girls!” Gwen called out, flying after them.

  But the girls were falling fast.

  Kirsty tried to flap her wings, but they wouldn’t work. “We’re going to hit the floor!”

  Then … plop! The girls landed in something soft and fuzzy.

  Rachel sat up, dazed. “We’re safe,” she said.

  “But what did we land in?” Kirsty asked, and then she looked up.

  The soft, fuzzy face of the Beast was smiling down at them.

  “Thanks, Beast!” Rachel said.

  Gwen flew up to the girls and hovered near Beast’s giant paw.

  “What a strange place this is,” Beast said. “It doesn’t look like my palace. I can’t find Beauty anywhere. And it seems to be full of fairies!”

  “Beast, we can help you get back to your home,” Rachel said. “But we need your help first!”

  Beast frowned. “That man over there doesn’t seem very nice.”

  “He’s not!” said Kirsty. “He stole my friend Gwen’s magic rose pin. And the book you gave to Beauty! We need to get it back from him.”

  “But how can I help?” Beast asked.

  Rachel looked thoughtful. “I have an idea. Jack Frost wants to be the star of your fairy tale.”

  Beast looked surprised. “He does?”

  “Yes!” said Kirsty. “He’ll be thrilled to see you.”

  “And you can just ask him to give you the pin,” Rachel said. “I bet he’ll hand it right over, since you’re the one asking!”

  Beast stroked his hairy chin. “This is all very strange. But if getting the pin back will help me get back to my palace, I will do it.”

  “Excellent!” said Gwen. “May we hide in your fur?”

  “Certainly!” Beast said. “Climb onto my back.”

  Kirsty and Rachel brushed the glitter off their wings. They flew up behind Beast and landed next to Gwen. Then they grabbed onto his fur.

  “Just use your beastly charm,” Gwen told Beast.

  “I will try,” Beast said.

  Beast headed to the table where Jack Frost stood all by himself, busily working on his princess costume. Rachel and Kirsty could see a corner of Beauty’s book poking out from under the fabric.

  “Hello there,” Beast said in his deep voice.

  Jack Frost looked up. “Beast!” he cried. “It’s really you!”

  “You seem to know me,” said Beast. “But I do not know you.”

  “Of course you do,” Jack Frost replied. “I am Beauty!”

  Beast squinted his eyes. “Hmm. You don’t look like Beauty.”

  “But I am!” Jack Frost insisted.

  “If you were Beauty, then you would be wearing a special pin,” said Beast. “It is shaped like a rose with a long stem.”

  Jack Frost got excited. “But I am wearing it!” He pointed to his shirt. “See? This proves I am Beauty.”

  “That doesn’t look like a rose pin to me,” said Beast.

  Jack Frost stamped his foot. “It is! It is!”

  “Can I please get a closer look at it?” Beast asked.

  “Of course!” Jack Frost said.

  Kirsty and Rachel held their breaths as Jack Frost unhooked the pin from his shirt. Then he placed it in Beast’s furry paw.

  Beast nodded. “Yes, that is the rose pin. And it’s all yours, Gwen.”

  “Gwen? I’m not Gwen. I’m Beauty!” Jack Frost protested.

  Gwen flew out from behind Beast’s head and touched the magic rose pin. It quickly shrank down to fairy size, and she pinned it onto her sweater, where it belonged.

  “Noooooo!” Jack Frost wailed.

  Just then, Beauty ran into the ballroom. “You!” she cried, pointing at Jack Frost. She marched right up to him and grabbed her magic book. “That is mine, thank you!”

  “This is not fair!” Jack Frost complained. “Everybody’s taking my stuff.”

  Beast leaned into Jack Frost’s face. “It was never your stuff to begin with,” he growled. “Now I would suggest you get out of here, fast!”

  Jack Frost turned pale. He slowly backed up, and then turned to run out of the ballroom, leaving a slight icy breeze in his wake.

  “Well done!” Gwen cheered.

  Kirsty and Rachel flew out from behind Beast.

  “Thanks for all your help,” Gwen told them. “And now I must turn you back into girls, so you can get ready for your party.”

  She waved her wand, and the sound of bells filled the air as the fairy magic did its work. Kirsty and Rachel were their normal selves again.

  Gwen turned to Beauty and the Beast. “It’s time to get you two back to your fairy tale,” she told them. Then she turned to Kirsty and Rachel. “I’ll be back soon!” Gwen, Beauty, and Beast vanished in a cloud of fairy dust.

  “We helped save another fairy tale!” Kirsty said.

  Rachel grinned. “I’m glad Beauty and the Beast are back where they belong.”

  Then Amy, one of the festival organizers, popped her head into the ballroom.

  “Wow, what a mess in here!” she said. “Have you girls finished your costumes yet? In a little while we need to start clearing things out for the party tonight.”

  “Um, we need a little more time,” Rachel said quickly.

  Amy nodded. “Okay. Good luck!” She closed t
he door, leaving the girls alone again.

  Rachel and Kirsty looked at each other.

  “What are we going to do?” Kirsty asked.

  “We need to think of a fairy tale creature we can be,” Rachel said. “What fairy tale creature is your favorite?”

  Both girls smiled. “Beast!” they cried at the same time.

  “We’ll need fur, and felt, and …” Rachel stopped talking as she looked around the ballroom. “Those goblins made such a mess!”

  “We’ll never be able to find anything we need!” Kirsty frowned.

  Gwen suddenly reappeared in a sparkling cloud of fairy dust. “I thought you girls might need some help,” she said.

  She waved her wand, and fairy dust and glittering roses rained down on the ballroom. The costume supplies magically returned to their boxes and bins. The floor was sparkling clean again.

  “Oh Gwen, thank you!” Rachel said. She ran to a box of brown fake fur. “This will be perfect for our Beast costumes.”

  “You both are going as Beast? How nice,” Gwen said. “He’s my favorite fairy tale creature, of course.”

  She flew over to the bin of fur. “I can whip up some wonderful Beast costumes for you with a wave of my wand,” she offered.

  “Thank you, but there are prizes for the best costumes, and that might be cheating,” Kirsty said.

  “But you can stay while we make our costumes,” Rachel said. “I don’t think it’s cheating if you cheer us on.”

  Gwen smiled. “Of course not!” She nestled herself in a box of feathers as the ballroom doors opened, and other kids returned to finish their costumes.

  The girls worked quickly to make their Beast outfits.

  “We can make furry hoods to wear,” Rachel said. “And glue felt ears on top.”

  “And make fancy vests out of felt that look like Beast’s jacket!” Kirsty said.

  “And wrap fur around our sleeves!” Rachel finished.

  “I think your costumes are going to be wonderful,” Gwen whispered.

  Amy came back into the ballroom just as the girls were finishing. Gwen quickly ducked her head underneath the feathers so that Amy wouldn’t see her.

  “How did it go, Kirsty and Rachel?” Amy asked.

  “We’re all done,” Rachel replied.

  “Good!” Amy said. She turned to address everyone in the ballroom. “It’s almost time for dinner. Please take your costumes to your rooms. I can’t wait to see what everyone’s come up with!”

  Amy left, and Gwen popped her head out of the box of feathers.

  “Achoo!” she said. “I better head back to Fairyland now. Good luck tonight, girls!”

  “Thank you!” the girls said, and Gwen disappeared in a shower of sparkles.

  Later that night, the big clock in the main hall chimed seven times. It was time for the Creature Costume Party!

  The girls were proud of their matching costumes. They looked just like two miniature Beasts. They were amazed at how creative their fellow partygoers had been with their costumes, too. They couldn’t believe their eyes as they made their way into the ballroom.

  “Look, there’s a unicorn!” Rachel said, pointing.

  “And there’s a frog! And a dragon!” Kirsty said.

  They walked over to a table where a fountain of green punch sparkled under the ballroom lights.

  “The goblins would have loved this!” Kirsty giggled.

  Next to the punch bowl were plates piled with cookies shaped like all kinds of creatures. Rachel picked up one that looked a little like Jack Frost.

  “Take that!” she said, munching on it, and Kirsty giggled again.

  Then Amy stepped into the middle of the ballroom, holding a microphone.

  “What great costumes, everyone!” she said. “Now it’s time for the Creature Parade! Please line up under the chandelier.”

  The girls ran to join the others in a line.

  “Once around the ballroom!” Amy said.

  The kids marched around the ballroom as music played. As they marched, Amy and two other festival organizers talked and made notes on everyone’s outfits.

  Then the music stopped.

  “Wonderful!” said Amy. “And now it’s time for prizes. Our first prize goes to Cutest Creature. And the winner is, Billy the Frog!”

  The boy in the frog costume cheered and ran up to get his prize—a blue ribbon with a yellow medal that read, “Cutest Costume”!

  Everyone cheered and clapped for Billy. Then Amy announced the other prizes. The girl dressed as a unicorn got the Most Magical Costume. A girl in a dragon costume won a prize for Best Scales.

  “Do you think we’ll win anything?” Kirsty asked Rachel.

  Then Amy called out the next prize. “And the prize for Best Duo goes to Kirsty and Rachel for their two mini Beasts!”

  The girls ran up to Amy and she handed each of them a ribbon. Thrilled, they pinned the ribbons to the front of their felt vests.

  After the rest of the prizes were given out, the music came back on and everyone danced in their creature costumes. By the time the party ended, both girls were very sleepy. Back in their room, they took off their costumes and scrubbed off their Beast noses.

  Rachel picked up The Fairies’ Book of Fairy Tales. Hannah the Happily Ever After Fairy had given it to them in Fairyland. The pages had all gone blank when Jack Frost stole the magic objects from the Fairy Tale Fairies.

  Kirsty looked over Rachel’s shoulder as Rachel flipped through the book. The stories of Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Cinderella, and The Frog Princess were all back in the book.

  “And here’s Beauty and the Beast!” said Rachel. “We helped save it.”

  Rachel flipped to the end of the book, where there were still many blank pages.

  “And now we have two more fairy tales left to save!” Kirsty said.

  Rachel and Kirsty found Julia’s, Eleanor’s, Faith’s, Rita’s, and Gwen’s missing magic objects. Now it’s time for them to help

  Join their next adventure in this special sneak peek …

  Kirsty and Rachel smiled at Aisha. She wore a cute, dark pink top with a matching flowy skirt. She had long black braids that fell past her shoulders. Her tiny, pink heeled shoes were decorated with black pom-poms.

  “Aisha!” Kirsty cried. “It’s so nice to see you again.”

  Rachel looked at the young woman in the doorway. “If you’re here, that means that she—”

  “Is the princess from The Princess and the Pea,” finished Aisha.

  The young woman frowned. “Princess? Pea?” she asked. Then she sighed. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m so confused!”

  “You should come inside,” Kirsty said quickly.

  Aisha fluttered up to the princess. “You’ve lost your memory … sort of,” she explained. “But don’t worry, I’ll help you, and so will my friends Kirsty and Rachel.”

  The princess nodded. “Thank you,” she said, and then she shivered. “It’s cold in here.”

  “We should get her some dry clothes,” Rachel said. “I’m sure we could find something in her size in the costume closet.”

  Kirsty nodded and looked at Aisha. “Do you want to fly into my pocket? We have to make sure nobody sees you.”

  “Of course!” Aisha replied with a smile, and she flew into the front pocket of Kirsty’s sweater.

  Rachel turned to the princess. “Follow us.”

  Copyright © 2016 by Rainbow Magic Limited.

  All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Inc., Publishers since 1920. SCHOLASTIC and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc. RAINBOW MAGIC is a trademark of Rainbow Magic Limited. Reg. U.S. Patent & Trademark Office and other countries. HIT and the HIT logo are trademarks of HIT Entertainment Limited.

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  This book is a work of fiction. Names, charac
ters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  First edition, January 2016

  Cover design by Angela Jun

  e-ISBN 978-0-545-86406-0

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